Puffy/swollen Eyelids

[alissar]

Hello! Since I was a teenager, I have woken up EVERY morning with swollen eyelids (top and bottom), and sacs of fluid underneath my eyes. I tried for years to figure out why, but the only possibility came down to a slight allergy to dust mites. I have hardwood floors, cover my beds with dust mite covers, sleep with silk bedding, have a hepa air purifier, wash my bedding in solution that kills mites every week, take allergy shots, and take an antihistamine before bed....my point....I highly doubt the fluid sacs around my eyes are from dust mites.

All of my labs for every disease or illness under the sun that cause puffy eyes came back normal. I am healthy and have a low sodium diet. My hands do swell at times, but other than that no other parts of my body are ever swollen.

Two weeks ago, I received my results from enterolab stating that I have anti-gliandin levels of 68 units (well above normal)...aka, I am gluten intolerant. I have not been tested for Celiac. (Should I trust enterolab results?)

As far as my eyes go, there is no real itch most of the time, the side I sleep on tends to be worse (although it always affects both eyes), and my eyes are very red. Preparation H causes much less fluid retention, so that leads me to believe this is due to angioedema (some sort of intolerance/allergy). I have seen an ophthalmologist, ENT, oculoplastic surgeon, and allergist who all agree, but can't figure out what the problem is.

I have been off gluten for about a month (but have been accidentally glutened) and have seen improvement. Do/did any of you wake up with swelling around your eyes due to gluten on a daily basis? How long after going off gluten did this issue go away? Its so frustrating!

[Eliza82]

I am not sure if this is gluten related just yet since I only started my gluten-free diet one week ago, but for the last year, I've had a puffy-feeling face that is red and I can feel it but others cannot see the puffyness, but I know its there. I had stomach problems before this and then was put on flagyl which made things much worse, so my face could still be having side-affects from the flagyl or the gluten or both. Hopefully we will both see changes soon.

It is frustrating but we have to stay positive. You are a strong person!

[Mari]

I wake up mornings with swollen eyes and bags and have not found that being off gluten has helped much. The only things which have helped was when I did a whole year or so of internal body cleanses (parasite, kidney, liver flushes and various liver support and toxin removing herbal programs). Its possible that you have some food allergies and if you are not digesting your food properly the food antigens could be passing into your body. You may have a silent reflux so when you lay down small amounts the undigested food backs up into your esophagus and mouth and the food antigens may be spread in saliva across your face as you are sleeping.

I found a book which guided me in removing toxins from both my body and environment. If you are reacting to some chemical then anything with a chemical solvent may be causing your reactions even the polish on your shoes, formalin in your bedding, furnature polish, traces of detergent on clothes and bedding, recently painted surfaces, traces of cosmetics. It took me several years to clean out the all the toxins from my home. You might also have molds growing in the structure of you house, especially the bathroom and kitchen.

[alissar]

Mari,

Have you been able to pinpoint what is causing your eyes to swell up in the morning? How long have you been off gluten for? I guess the reason I thought it was from gluten is because of the decrease I have seen in the puffiness every day since going gluten-free. But, I am definitely willing to explore more options and other areas as a source of the problem. Thanks!

[Kurzemiete]

On 5/4/2010 at 12:56 AM, Mari said:

I wake up mornings with swollen eyes and bags and have not found that being off gluten has helped much. The only things which have helped was when I did a whole year or so of internal body cleanses (parasite, kidney, liver flushes and various liver support and toxin removing herbal programs). Its possible that you have some food allergies and if you are not digesting your food properly the food antigens could be passing into your body. You may have a silent reflux so when you lay down small amounts the undigested food backs up into your esophagus and mouth and the food antigens may be spread in saliva across your face as you are sleeping.

 

Quote

I found a book which guided me in removing toxins from both my body and environment.

If you are reacting to some chemical then anything with a chemical solvent may be causing your reactions even the polish on your shoes, formalin in your bedding, furnature polish, traces of detergent on clothes and bedding, recently painted surfaces, traces of cosmetics. It took me several years to clean out the all the toxins from my home. You might also have molds growing in the structure of you house, especially the bathroom and kitchen.

Would you happen to recall the name of this book? 

My daughter and I have this problem with gluten, dairy. I can't afford a totally G.F. diet. That is one of the drawbacks on having a really small income when one is on disability benefits...

Anything at all that is helpful would be a great benefit to my family. 

Thank you. 

[GFinDC]

4 hours ago, Kurzemiete said:

Would you happen to recall the name of this book? 

My daughter and I have this problem with gluten, dairy. I can't afford a totally G.F. diet. That is one of the drawbacks on having a really small income when one is on disability benefits...

Anything at all that is helpful would be a great benefit to my family. 

Thank you. 

Hi,

If you have celiac disease, the gluten-free diet is the medical treatment.  It is the only treatment.  So eating gluten-free is imperative if you want to be healthy.

That said, there are many ways to eat gluten-free.  You can buy all kinds of expensive gluten-free processed foods like gluten-free cookies, bread, cereals, etc.   Or you can buy foods like beans, meats, nuts, eggs, and veggies which cost us the same as anyone else.  There is no extra cost involved for them.   Mission brand corn tortillas are gluten-free and make a cheap sub for bread.

It may take some adjustment to eating mostly whole foods, but it is a better diet.  If you try it, you might like it!

[Kurzemiete]

Thank you for  replying.

Yeah, we, actually and especially me, don't do well with high glycemic index foods. So I have to maintain a kind of Paleo diet for myself. For example: corn has high glycemic index compared with quinoa and buckwheat or even wild rice. I try to avoid corn but I the budget is an impediment  to  eating a lot of meat and good fat proteins, fish, foul etc.

Definitely trying to eat as whole foods as is possible for us.

[MADMOM]

On 4/28/2010 at 11:18 AM, alissar said:

Hello! Since I was a teenager, I have woken up EVERY morning with swollen eyelids (top and bottom), and sacs of fluid underneath my eyes. I tried for years to figure out why, but the only possibility came down to a slight allergy to dust mites. I have hardwood floors, cover my beds with dust mite covers, sleep with silk bedding, have a hepa air purifier, wash my bedding in solution that kills mites every week, take allergy shots, and take an antihistamine before bed....my point....I highly doubt the fluid sacs around my eyes are from dust mites.

 

All of my labs for every disease or illness under the sun that cause puffy eyes came back normal. I am healthy and have a low sodium diet. My hands do swell at times, but other than that no other parts of my body are ever swollen.

 

Two weeks ago, I received my results from enterolab stating that I have anti-gliandin levels of 68 units (well above normal)...aka, I am gluten intolerant. I have not been tested for Celiac. (Should I trust enterolab results?)

 

As far as my eyes go, there is no real itch most of the time, the side I sleep on tends to be worse (although it always affects both eyes), and my eyes are very red. Preparation H causes much less fluid retention, so that leads me to believe this is due to angioedema (some sort of intolerance/allergy). I have seen an ophthalmologist, ENT, oculoplastic surgeon, and allergist who all agree, but can't figure out what the problem is.

 

I have been off gluten for about a month (but have been accidentally glutened) and have seen improvement. Do/did any of you wake up with swelling around your eyes due to gluten on a daily basis? How long after going off gluten did this issue go away? Its so frustrating!

i’m experiencing it now for about 5 days i think i got intolerant to eggs or tomatoes which i had one day apart - and rarely eat - my eyelids and under eyes are swollen and oozy looks like when a stye appears - also had it july face mainly on my jawline from ear to ear and chin which is now so dry and slowly going away - last time this happened was 5 months prior to being dx with celiac - reset your diet and eat clean it will gradually go away 

[LCAnacortes]

I have have puffiness as well - especially in my ankles - and sometimes in my hands and face too.  When I went gluten free in May, I dropped 10 lbs of water weight. Since then my ankles are still puffy but nearly as bad.  But what is interesting - about the time I started having really bad digestive problems, I started having more puffiness in my eyes. They have lots of sleep granules on the eyelids and they water and gets a little oozy too. I had not connected it to celiac - but now I wonder.  I have not be officially diagnosed - but found out that it runs strongly in my mother's side of the family - with other family members being diagnosed by blood test/colonoscopy and and another family member via DNA. Seems like this might be yet another symptom.  So glad I'm not alone or crazy.  So sorry you are going through it.  

[Tracy414]

5 hours ago, LCAnacortes said:

I have have puffiness as well - especially in my ankles - and sometimes in my hands and face too.  When I went gluten free in May, I dropped 10 lbs of water weight. Since then my ankles are still puffy but nearly as bad.  But what is interesting - about the time I started having really bad digestive problems, I started having more puffiness in my eyes. They have lots of sleep granules on the eyelids and they water and gets a little oozy too. I had not connected it to celiac - but now I wonder.  I have not be officially diagnosed - but found out that it runs strongly in my mother's side of the family - with other family members being diagnosed by blood test/colonoscopy and and another family member via DNA. Seems like this might be yet another symptom.  So glad I'm not alone or crazy.  So sorry you are going through it.  

I’m finding this thread quite interesting. Back in October when all of my weird symptoms starting happening, puffy eye lids and face were one of them! I don’t have redness or oozing, but they are swollen every morning and then get dry from the edema. They did start improving with gluten free, then worse again with my gluten challenge. I lost weight on my elimination diet and gained it all back with the gluten challenge. Feel like I look pregnant all the time. All my antibodies are negative, but my HLA testing was positive for DQ2 and DQA1*05. I’m guessing I either have NCGS or IBS. I feel better hearing other folks have similar issues, makes me feel less crazy!! 

[MADMOM]

4 hours ago, Tracy414 said:

I’m finding this thread quite interesting. Back in October when all of my weird symptoms starting happening, puffy eye lids and face were one of them! I don’t have redness or oozing, but they are swollen every morning and then get dry from the edema. They did start improving with gluten free, then worse again with my gluten challenge. I lost weight on my elimination diet and gained it all back with the gluten challenge. Feel like I look pregnant all the time. All my antibodies are negative, but my HLA testing was positive for DQ2 and DQA1*05. I’m guessing I either have NCGS or IBS. I feel better hearing other folks have similar issues, makes me feel less crazy!! 

i’ve been so careful on my journey and never had a reaction like this since before my dx - i ate eggs and then tomatoes the next day- generally i don’t eat eggs so i think that’s what gave me a reaction / my eyelids are so dry and cracked and my skin across my jaw and near my ears is extremely dry and itchy - idk how this happened  but i can’t wait for it to disappear 

[Tracy414]

5 hours ago, MADMOM said:

i’ve been so careful on my journey and never had a reaction like this since before my dx - i ate eggs and then tomatoes the next day- generally i don’t eat eggs so i think that’s what gave me a reaction / my eyelids are so dry and cracked and my skin across my jaw and near my ears is extremely dry and itchy - idk how this happened  but i can’t wait for it to disappear 

That sounds so awful! I hope you heal quickly and it never happens again!! 

[MADMOM]

5 hours ago, Tracy414 said:

That sounds so awful! I hope you heal quickly and it never happens again!! 

ty it’s so uncomfortable 

[LCAnacortes]

I had eczema behind my ears - dry, itchy big time - until I went gluten free.  It is much better now.  The gut takes a long time to heal. My understanding is DQ8 is a leading indicator for celiac.

[MADMOM]

10 minutes ago, LCAnacortes said:

I had eczema behind my ears - dry, itchy big time - until I went gluten free.  It is much better now.  The gut takes a long time to heal. My understanding is DQ8 is a leading indicator for celiac.

yes i have celiac this seems to be a reaction i got from either eggs or tomatoes - it’s slowly going away but my eyelids and chin are dry and itchy 

[Tracy414]

8 minutes ago, LCAnacortes said:

I had eczema behind my ears - dry, itchy big time - until I went gluten free.  It is much better now.  The gut takes a long time to heal. My understanding is DQ8 is a leading indicator for celiac.

DQ2 is found in, I believe about 90% of people who have celiac and DQ8 in the other 10%. That being said, I’m learning from this site there is a whole lot of variation in all things celiac. My dermatologist said I probably had eczema or something of that nature on my scalp, but I’m not convinced. I never had flaking anywhere or the typical eczema features anywhere. Not to say that’s not what I had. No one has an answer for my puffy eye lids that started with all my other weird stuff. Mine aren’t painful, just annoying. 

[LCAnacortes]

Yep itchy bumps on my scalp that went away after going gluten free. Still have some itching under my chin, temples and other places. Sometimes it breaks out after I eat. Much less now that I'm gluten free - but it is only since May so it will take a while.

[MADMOM]

oh yes it’s very painful the eye lid skin is so sensitive -im just so annoyed that i have been so careful- but i was told by others on this wonderful site that i could have gotten it from eggs since they do feed wheat to chickens - i don’t really eat eggs - in any case i feel better that others have experienced similar things and i’m not the only one 

[LCAnacortes]

@Tracy414Just figured out that I was using a conditioner with wheat in it.  Once I stopped using the conditioner the red, itchy bumps went away.  Check your lotions, shampoo, conditioner and all other products for gluten.  

 

[jmichelle]

Recently, when i have been glutened,  i wake up with swollen eyelids..One eye more puffier than the other. But, that didn’t used to happen in the past. It appears to be gluten related since 24hrs later the swelling goes down but i can’t know 100%.  I’m trying to see if that’s common when being glutened. 

[knitty kitty]

@jmichelle,

Puffy eyes can be a result of high histamine.  Histamine is released as part of the autoimmune response to gluten.  Taking B Complex vitamins and Vitamin C will help get rid of the histamine.  

Hope this helps!

[jmichelle]

6 hours ago, knitty kitty said:

@jmichelle,

Puffy eyes can be a result of high histamine.  Histamine is released as part of the autoimmune response to gluten.  Taking B Complex vitamins and Vitamin C will help get rid of the histamine.  

Hope this helps!

 

Thanks @knitty kitty